MALLARD THREAD...not rouens, Mallards!

[silkie1472]

She is beautiful! Is she very tame?

Yes! They were hand raised and will eat out my hands. They began flying out of they coop, so their wings got clipped. They get scared of me sometimes, but they eventually come back to me. Ever since their pond froze over, they will not come very close to me, but they are slowly improving.

 

[silkie1472]

The actual reason is because I had to chase the hen down to take her picture...

But I caught her.

 

[Julie Birb]

The actual reason is because I had to chase the hen down to take her picture...

But I caught her.

I'm jealous. You got to hold a soft little girl duck burd. She very koot.

 

[NathanZee]

Yes! They were hand raised and will eat out my hands. They began flying out of they coop, so their wings got clipped. They get scared of me sometimes, but they eventually come back to me. Ever since their pond froze over, they will not come very close to me, but they are slowly improving.

Awesome! Okay. Where did you get them from?

The actual reason is because I had to chase the hen down to take her picture...

But I caught her.

Real reason for what?

 

[Daniel-Sorensen]

Daniel I know that your birds are pure, but you cannot disagree with julie on this one ( sorry i just saw this post today ) the birds in the wild environment, without papers on lineage or dna tests, have to be considered mixes/un-pure because their coloring cannot be proved as pure mallard breeding stock.

Exactly, i know they can not be proved to be pure and i dont disagree with that. The thing i disagree with is the call duck "shapes" more

 

[Daniel-Sorensen]

Intersex mallard.


EDIT: He is not eclipsing...
First of all the picture is taken some days ago, and right now there is winter in sweden and that means that the wild birds are not changing feathers. Ducks have their most perfect feathers in the winter and this is not his eclipse feathers.
Another thing is that wild colored mallard males have orange/yellow beaks.
Another example on a intersex mallard:
http://www.siung.net/bird/tmp2/bird/intersex-mallard-vancouver_files/male_femalemallard01.jpg

 

[silkie1472]

Awesome! Okay. Where did you get them from?

I did not have them since they were babies. A close friend, who got permission to get the eggs, hatched the babies as the mother was killed by a car. They were not wild, but close. They were mallards that had been ordered from somebody that lived on a lake. They began breeding and laying, then the drake went missing, and the hen was killed. Once She hatched the eggs, she stayed home all day with them until they could fly. However, they would fly into their neighbors yard when she was not outside, and they told them that they would have to get rid of them. So they asked me if I would take them. They clipped their wings, but they were still able to clear a 5ft. fence. So they gave them to me and I kept them in a 20x10ft. coop for 3 weeks with a pool of water so they would stay on our pond. Once they were used to me and the other ducks, I was able to let them out and they followed me around the yard. Now, they just stay with the rouens and enjoy trying to fly.

Real reason for what? 

What I meant by this was that the real reason that they would not come to me was because I had to chase the hen for a little bit so I could get a picture of her, so now it will be a couple weeks before they come back to me.

 

[Ravynscroft]

Exactly, i know they can not be proved to be pure and i dont disagree with that. The thing i disagree with is the call duck "shapes" more

Sorry you disagree... mallards should be slim and torpedo shaped... rounded bodies, shorter lengths and rounder heads are traits Calls were bred out from and for...

Intersex mallard.

He's eclipsing...

 

[silkie1472]

Here's one of my drakes along with the hen that is poking her head out of the nesting tube.

 

[silkie1472]

Sorry, not a very good picture, it got cut off.